Speculation about the health of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is mounting after his name was missing from a list of dignitaries celebrating today’s anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers’ Party.
His apparent no-show at the event will add to rumours that something is amiss with the authoritarian leader, who has not been seen publicly for more than a month.
An official state media dispatch listed senior government, military and party officials who paid their respects at an event marking the party’s 69th anniversary, but not Kim.
It said a flower basket with Kim's name on it was placed before statues of his father and grandfather, both of whom also ruled North Korea. State media said earlier that the might of the party "is growing stronger under the seasoned guidance of Marshal Kim Jong Un".
Kim, who is thought to be 31, has not been seen performing his customary public duties in state media since he attended a concert on September 3rd. He had been walking with a limp and was more overweight than usual in images that aired before that.
An official documentary from late last month described him as dealing with “discomfort” which led to international speculation that he may be ill.
North Korea strictly controls information about its government and elite, so much of what happens in Pyongyang’s inner circles is hidden from the eyes of outsiders and even many average North Koreans.
This leaves media in South Korea and elsewhere to speculate, sometimes wildly, about what is really going on. Some reports indicate that Kim could have gout, diabetes - even, from a British news story, a cheese addiction - much of it based on that single line in the documentary and unidentified sources speaking to South Korean media.
South Korean officials are playing down the speculation.
In Seoul, Unification Ministry spokesman Lim Byeong Cheol said Kim appeared to still be in charge of key affairs. He noted that a top-level North Korean delegation conveyed a greetings message to South Korean president Park Geun-hye during their surprise visit to South Korea last week. Mr Lim said Pyongyang's state media has continuously reported about Kim's leadership.
North Korea has said nothing publicly about Kim’s absence. But it is not the first time he has taken a break from the media spotlight - Kim was not seen publicly for about three weeks in 2012, South Korean officials say - and a senior North Korean official on last week’s visit to the South told a South Korean counterpart that Kim was fine.
Without the extended absence, Kim not showing up at the party celebration would not be all that important or unusual. Such anniversaries are generally given more weight when they are landmark years. A high-profile celebration, for example, is expected for next year’s 70th anniversary of the ruling party.
Because Pyongyang is publicly acknowledging Kim’s “discomfort”, many analysts believe that he is unlikely to be suffering from anything particularly serious. When his father, Kim Jong-il, suffered major health problems late in his rule, state media said nothing. Kim Jong-il is believed to have suffered a stroke in 2008.
But each day that passes only adds to the speculation. Kim missed a meeting of the country’s parliament late last month, and was absent again from a gathering this week to mark his late father’s election as ruling party head.
Kim was also not seen in North Korean media reports greeting athletes who returned from the Asian Games in the South, although they were given a lavish reception and heavy media coverage when they returned to the capital.
Press Association